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What’s up? — Junior Rangers Program Refresh

Jul 17, 2025
Photograph of an open booklet with a stamp and inkpad resting on top of it; the open booklet page has been stamped with ink in the shape of a bear head and text reading "JUNIOR RANGER CALIFORNIA STATE PARKS)."

Illustration of three intertwined speech bubbles with an exclamation point, a question mark, and an ellipsis, and the accompanying text,

New statewide Junior Ranger materials have been making their debut at parks across the system this summer. I&E Division presented a Statewide Webinar in May about the program refresh that you can view here. Some highlights of the new materials include:

  • Logbook
    • Redesigned to support a wide range of Jr Ranger programs and to clarify youth progress through the reward structure
    • Logbooks are bilingual (English and Spanish), full color, and passport-size
    • Stamps: for staff to use with the logbook; produced with park-specific text variation
  • Rewards
    • 1st program: Wooden Badge (youth receive a unique park-specific badge for their first program at a new park)
    • 5th program: Compass Clip (arriving by the end of July; please consider using former program rewards as a substitute in the interim, e.g. saber-tooth cat patch or “Parks Are Wild” poster)
    • 10th program: Bandana (equally good for outdoor utility and for home-display of Jr Ranger Badges)
    • 15th program: Patch (new Bear and Poppy design)
  • Little Rangers (6 and under)
    • Wooden Stickers: to be used in place of a badge; feature colorful designs of state symbols
  • Adventure Guides
    • New Statewide OHV Adventure Guide
Photograph of a large number of round wooden stickers evenly spaced across a flat surface, each featuring one of a small number of colorful designs.

Colorful wooden stickers featuring illustrations of state symbols to be given as awards to Little Rangers (ages 6 and under), new for Summer 2025.

In addition to these items, several supporting materials are still in development and will be available to staff in the coming months:

  • Little Rangers (6 and under)
    • Coloring Sheets: featuring state symbols
  • Adventure Guides
    • Statewide Adventure Guide: redesigned with more engaging visuals and greater age-appropriate flexibility
    • Templates: for staff developing park-specific Adventure Guides; to be made available in various formats (Canva, Word, etc.)
  • Program Administration Support
    • Handbook: guide to the expectations and best practices for administering Jr Ranger programs; distributed electronically
    • Resource Library: a statewide online library for sharing Jr Ranger program outlines, Adventure Guides, and promotional materials; via the I&E Resources Hub Sharepoint site
    • Promo Posters: 1 version featuring generic statewide program images; 1 version providing a striking frame for mounting your own park-specific program flyer

We at I&E Division are so immensely grateful to the MANY staff who contributed to the development of these new materials. We also appreciate your patience as these materials have been arriving in multiple shipments over the course of the summer.

Good interpretation requires regular evaluation, and we want to hear your feedback. If you notice any ways that these materials could be improved before next summer, please reach out to me (the statewide Jr Ranger Coordinator) at mailto:Devin.McCutchen@parks.ca.gov.

—Devin McCutchen, State Park Interpreter II, Interpretation and Education Division

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